
“Both the municipal swimming pool and the rotating car park are two fundamental elements for Candlemas and we do not know the reasons used by Costas to deny the renewal of the concession to the town hall”, pointed out on Onda Tenerife Airam Pérez Chinea, councilor for Finance, Human Resources and Concessionaire Companies and head of the public company Epelcan, in charge of managing these two facilities, which have been closed for more than two years due to this refusal by Costas.
In the first case, that of the swimming pool located in La Hornilla since the 1960s, the City Council of Candelaria “has held meetings with Costas in Madrid for months, but we still do not know the reasons why the concession is not renewed, since that it is not an economic problem of the canon, ”says the mayor. In addition, he adds that “they have not formally told us that they want to recover the public domain and if so, we have told them to allow us to use it until we can unlock the indoor pool project. Once built, it would be clear what would be done with the current pool, which has been until now a meeting point for all candlestick makers, where many children have learned to swim and many older people have been able to use it as a therapeutic remedy. Costas knows all of this, but they don’t answer us that way, ”says Airam Pérez Chinea, who thinks that Costas does not give an answer, because the transfer of powers to the Government of the Canary Islands is still being negotiated. “Even if the Government has this assignment, we can unblock this situation that is harming the citizens of Candelaria so much in sports and health,” he said.
As for the rotating car park located right in front of the Town Hall, between Los Guanches beach and El Alcalde beach, Costas has also refused to renew the concession, just shortly after, in May 2019, a municipal investment of more than 300,000 euros to pave it, paint it and install vending machines. The car park works today, but with a free barrier, which prevents it from functioning properly as its 150 spaces are occupied almost permanently, especially in the mornings, when the citizen needs an agile car park to carry out administrative procedures or go to the health center . “We have presented a contentious-administrative appeal and we are waiting for the Justice to decide,” said Pérez Chinea, for a week also a member of Municipal Action of the new executive of the Tenerife PSOE.